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THE IMPORTANCE AND VALUE OF DATA Emer Gallahar Hall outlines the multiple benefits to your business of keeping your data accurate and relevant to your activities
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ompanies generally hold on to a lot of information and one of the most valuable assets you hold is your customer information. Having up to date and accurate information is important for everyone. Accurate customer information is vital, so that you can know your market better and contact customers if and when needed. Having the newest, most accurate information also helps to get the most out of sales and marketing efforts. You may have data on 100 ‘customers’ listed on a database, but what percentage of the data are accurate, and what percentage of those customers have you been in contact with over the previous 12 months? On average, data decays at about 35% per annum, so it's safe to assume that at least 35 of those 100 records are either inaccurate or outdated.
DATA CLEANSING Data cleansing is important, it improves data quality and in so doing, increases productivity. When you clean your data, outdated or incorrect information is removed, leaving only the highest quality information. This ensures your team does not have to go through countless outdated documents and allows employees to make the most of their work hours. Now that you know what data cleansing is and why it is so important, you may be wondering how to start the data cleansing process! There is no ‘one size fits all.’ Data cleansing methods often depend on the type of data you have. However, here are some general tips to help you get started.
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ASSESS YOUR DATA Data cleansing usually involves cleaning data from a single database, such as a spreadsheet. If your information is already organised into a database or spreadsheet, you can easily assess the volume of data, how easy it is to understand, and what may or may not need updating. If your data is currently in individual files and spread across your computers or network, you will need to compile it so you can evaluate it in entirety. These are some questions you need to ask: ● Does my data seem to make sense? ● Are there any duplicates, and if so, why, and is that okay? ● Does numerical data add up and make sense? ● Are there spelling errors or numbers where there should not be? ● Is there any information that you would like to add to your data? ● Does it leave options open to add data in the future? This initial evaluation will allow an estimation of how much there is to do. If you notice all your data is from 2015, you may have your work cut out for you! But if you simply notice a few outdated numbers and a spelling mistake or two, a quick update may be all that is needed.
CLEAN DATA IN A SEPARATE SPREADSHEET Before making changes, create a copy of your spreadsheet and make any changes within the copy instead of the original. This will protect you and your
HORTICULTURECONNECTED / www.horticultureconnected.ie / Summer 2021
